Watch an interview with playwright Motti Lerner and the Artistic Director's Roundtable (June 24)

Artistic Director’s Roundtable Discussions Immediately following many Sunday matinee performances, this discussion series brings together the finest panelists to explore issues of social, literary and political significance aimed at augmenting the playgoer’s experience. FREE with “Pangs” ticket.

Wednesday, September 5          

Paul Scham, Middle East Insitute and Rabbi Barry Freundel, Kesher Israel

Thursday, September 6

David Makovsky,  Senior Fellow and Director of The Washington Institute for Near East Policy’s Project on the Middle East Peace Process, moderated by Stephen Stern, Theater J Council

Monday, September 10

Rafi Dajani,  Executive Director, American Task Force on Palestine, moderated by Stephen Stern, Theater J Council

Sunday, September 16, 3pm

Cosponsored by American University Center for Israel Studies. With Naomi Gale (Schusterman Visiting Professor) Israeli professor – lawyer, anthropologist, mediator) and Russell Stone, Sociology Department Chair, Director of Center for Israel Studies.

Sunday, September 16, 7:30pm

Micha Balf, Federation Partnership for Jewish Living and Learning – Israel Education Schliach (Emissary of Jewish Agency), moderated by Stephen Stern, Theater J Council.

June 23 - July 22, 2007

Sunday, June 24 
Zealotry, Jerusalem, and the Legacy of the Settlers' Movement:
Can There Be A Shared Holy City For All Three Abrahamic Faiths?
Panelists include Motti Lerner, playwright of Pangs of the Messiah; Philip Farah, Washington Interfaith Alliance for Middle East Peace; Jim Vitarello, president of Sharing Jerusalem USA. Moderated by Paul Scham, Middle East Institute.

Sunday, July 1
What Jews Say About Arabs and What Arabs Say about Jews:
The Subtext of Living Together and Apart
Panelists include Andy Shallal, Peace Café co-founder, Busboys and Poets; Ghaith Al-Omari, senior fellow, New America Foundation, lead Palestinian drafter, Geneva Initiative and Ron Dermer, Minister for Economic Affairs, Embassy of Israel.  Moderated by Jeffrey Goldberg, staff writer, The New Yorker.   

Sunday, July 8
Settler religious life on the West Bank: Values, Tradition, Ideology and the Women of Pangs – Evolution of the Play since 1986
Panelists include Michael Taub, Author of Modern Israeli Drama, Translator of the original 1987 version of Pangs of the Messiah. Avi West, Education Officer, Partnership for Jewish Life and Learning. Moderated by Erica Brown, Scholar-in-Residence, Jewish Federation of Greater Washington.

Sunday, July 15
The Impact of the Religious Settler Movement: The Interplay of Messianism and Nationalist Politics - Lessons of Occupation, Disengagement and the Future of the Movement
Panelists include Micha Balf, Jewish Federation of Greater Washington's community shaliach (liaison) for the Israel in DC program, Jonathan Groner, frequent reviewer of books on Jewish and Israeli topics for The Washington Post Book World and many other publications. He is a member of Kemp Mill Synagogue in Silver Spring. And Ori Nir, spokesman of Americans for Peace Now. Moderated by Marshall Breger.

Sunday, July 22 (Special 1:00 pm start time!)
5X5: Playwrights respond to PANGS OF THE MESSIAH
Five original, newly written five-minute plays reflecting on the play Pangs of the Messiah. With the participation of Extreme Exchange theater group.
For submission guidelines, contact Hannah Hessel at hannah@washingtondcjcc.org.

Peace Café Discussions
Thursday, July 5, 12, and 19 - Following the 7:30 Performance
Stay after the show to eat, drink, and discuss with invited experts.

Among the themes to be discussed at the Roundtables and Peace Cafes:

• What is the political future of the Nationalist Settler Movement?
• Orthodox religious life and movements in the Settlements and Israel
• Character, religion, ideology, and conflict – Pangs of the Messiah as prophetic Warning?
• The women of Pangs of the Messiah, their role in the play, in the Religious Settler Movement, and in Israel
• Secular and religious Israelis: The breach and paths to reconciliation
• Palestinian life in the West Bank

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